Korin
|manga debut = "Sage of the Karin Tower" |anime debut = "Korin Tower" |movie debut = ''Dragon Ball: Mystical Adventure |Race = Cat |Gender = Male |Date of birth = Approximately 50 Before Age |Date of death = May 8, Age 774 Age 779 |Address = FFA 44195 SQDaizenshuu 7 |Occupation = Hermit |FamConnect = |Counterparts= Future Korin Chocolay |Students = Master Roshi Goku Krillin Yamcha Tien Shinhan Chiaotzu Yajirobe }} is a wise cat who is over 800 years old that lives atop a giant tower. He is a martial arts master. Appearance Akira Toriyama used his own cat as a model for Korin and drew him while the cat was sleeping, this is why Korin's eyes are closed (Toriyama's later cat was the inspiration for Beerus).Chouzenshuu 1, 2013 Korin has blue fur in the manga, Dragon Ball Z: Super Saiya Densetsu and Dragon Ball Online. It is changed to white in the anime. Personality Korin may appear to be a strict teacher, but he's actually a very nice guy. When Goku went to get the holy water while Korin was sleeping, he changed his mind and didn't steal the water. Korin, impressed by this display of honesty and decency, decided he would train Goku to his full potential. As noted by Kami, Korin likes to play tricks. According to Bouken Special, Korin can't stand dogs. Biography Background Korin is a Senbyō (仙猫, immortal cat) and is at least 800 years old when he makes his introduction in Dragon Ball.''Dragon Ball'' volume 8: "Taopaipai & Master Karin", page 62. USA, CAN.2003 - He is a deity who lives at the top of Korin Tower, located right underneath The Lookout. Korin is a legendary figure amongst the warrior-world, hailed as "The God of Martial Arts". This frequently leads to surprise and disbelief for those meeting him for the first time, as his appearance has yet to attain the fame of his reputation. The young Roshi was the first one of many to climb the tall Korin Tower and train under the legendary Korin. It took him three years to catch Korin and obtain the Sacred Water, which was rumored to tremendously increase one's strength and speed. Later, Korin plays a large role in Dragon Ball, when he trains Goku during the Red Ribbon Army Saga. At later points in the series, Korin lends his assistance periodically to Goku and the Dragon Team by lending Senzu Beans to aid them in their battles. ''Dragon Ball'' Red Ribbon Army Saga When Goku enters the Sacred Land of Korin searching for his Grandpa Gohan's Four-Star Dragon Ball, he soon discovers that the ball is held by the native inhabitants, Bora and Upa. Gratefully, Bora gives the ball to Goku and tells him of the legend of the colossal tower, so high that not even airplanes can reach the top; if a person manages to climb to the top and drink the "Sacred Water" held by Korin, the Master of Combat, their strength and speed will be tremendously increased. In addition to this, Korin is the only one who grows the Senzu Beans which heal wounds and are equivalent to eating ten days worth of food. Learning of their defeat, the Red Ribbon Army sends the hired assassin Mercenary Tao, who easily kills Bora and overpowers Goku and nearly kills him, if not for the Dragon Ball hidden in his clothing protecting him from Tao's Dodon Ray. After coming to, Goku realizes his need to become stronger and begins the ascent, climbing throughout the day and into the night, sleeping with his tail clinging tightly to the handholds. After a day of straight climbing, an exhausted Goku reaches the top and after a little searching, he encounters the immortal white cat, Korin, who is insulted at the boy's disbelief that he is the legendary master. After reading Goku's mind and finding his intentions pure, Korin tells the boy that he can have the Sacred Water. Goku leaps to grab it, but the cat immediately snatches it away, hooking it to his stick and declaring that the boy can indeed have it if he can take it from him. Even Goku's superhuman agility is no match for the cat, as he leads Goku on a chase around and around the tower, matching Goku's Afterimage Technique with his own, eventually becoming bored with the "workout" and calling an end for the day. An exhausted, yet curious Goku asks if anyone has managed to reach the water; the cat responds that the only one who did was Goku's old teacher, Master Roshi, which shocks the boy. He is further shocked when, asking how long it took, Korin responds with three years. The next day, Goku awakes to find Korin dumping "garbage" over the side of the tower, including his Grandpa Gohan's Four-Star Ball. Furious, Goku immediately runs down the tower to retrieve it and climbs it again, while the old cat looks on with satisfaction; what took a day previously has now only taken three hours, a sign of the boy's growing strength. On the evening of the second day, Goku considers taking the Sacred Water from Korin in his sleep but at the last minute, he decides that he would "rather get it fair and square" even though he needed the strength to avenge the murder of his friend at the hands of Tao. Korin, who was actually pretending to sleep all this time, is deeply impressed by Goku's honorable and decent character, and becomes determined to train the boy to his full potential. After three days of chasing and climbing, a determined Goku finally manages to outmaneuver Korin and take the bottle of Sacred Water from him; after drinking it, however, he does not notice any strength increase at all. Korin informs him that it is just tap water, and that it was Goku's intense exertion and ability to climb the tower that made him much stronger and faster than before. A grateful Goku thanks Korin for the training, and climbs down the tower to face Mercenary Tao again. In an anime filler, after Goku tells Mercenary Tao about the Sacred Water during their second fight, the assassin climbs the tower to get the power for himself. On the top, Korin sensed a wicked man like Mercenary Tao and tricked him, by only giving him the "Sacred" Water without the training, which has no benefits. He then calls and gives Tao a Dark Nimbus, but as soon as Tao almost reaches the bottom, the nimbus (through Korin's control) makes him fall through it rather than let him fly all the way down on it. King Piccolo Saga When Yajirobe carries Goku up the Korin Tower from his first confrontation with the legendary King Piccolo, Korin reveals that he has in fact special water that unleashes the drinker’s inner power, the Ultra Divine Water. However, the water itself is so dangerous that he refuses to let Goku journey to retrieve it until learning that the infamous King Piccolo had been released. After a grueling trek and overcoming numerous obstacles (in anime only), Yajirobe and Goku reach the Ultra Divine Water. Tasting a single drop of the Ultra Divine Water disgusted and was extremely painful for Yajirobe, who then begs Goku not to drink it. However, Goku drinks it deeply, sending him into agony as well. After a couple of hours of agony, the water gave him the power needed to defeat King Piccolo, with Korin in great surprise, but extremely proud of the boy's progress and power. After Goku defeats King Piccolo, Yajirobe brings Goku to the tower to heal his wounds. Goku tells Korin that Shenron was killed by King Piccolo and there is no way to revive all the people that were killed. Korin tells Goku about the Guardian of Earth who is the creator of the Dragon Balls. Korin tells Goku to use his Power Pole to get to The Lookout way above Korin's tower. ''Dragon Ball Z'' Saiyan Saga Korin shows up from time to time, giving a Senzu Bean to Goku when he is revived after the battle against Vegeta, and helping the Dragon Team after the battle against the Saiyans. Frieza Saga In the anime, Korin and Yajirobe meet Krillin's girlfriend, Maron. During this period, Maron notably convinced Korin and Yajirobe to cook for her, and played poker with them. He also is shown as having a weakness to being stroked on the chin, as Maron demonstrates when getting him to go her way, although the second time she did this he snapped at her to stop doing that. Cell Saga A few years later, after Cell has achieved his perfect form by absorbing Android 17 and Android 18, Goku visits Korin after his training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber to show him his new power by powering up as a Super Saiyan. While Goku charges up, Korin demands for Goku to stop, because if he carries on, his aura would be enough to make the Korin Tower collapse. Afterwards Korin reveals that despite Goku's increase in power and mastery of the Super Saiyan form, Cell's power is still greater than his. Majin Buu Saga Seven years after the defeat of Cell, Goku visits Korin again to get a Senzu Bean for Videl who has been injured by Spopovich during the 25th World Martial Arts Tournament. Korin was killed either when Super Buu used the Human Extinction Attack or when Kid Buu used the Planet Burst on the planet, but was revived by Porunga. ''Dragon Ball Super'' Golden Frieza Saga Although not seen, Korin supplies Senzus for Krillin and Master Roshi when in need for the battle against Frieza and his army of 1,000 soldiers. Copy-Vegeta Saga Korin, along with Yajirobe, is at Korin Tower, looking on the top of the tower while Goku was on there with a look of confusion. ''Dragon Ball GT'' Baby Saga Korin makes a cameo appearance in Dragon Ball GT, in episode 40 "Piccolo's Decision", when Kibito Kai saved him and Yajirobe from the Earth's destruction. He is also seen in one of the flashbacks in the final episode of Dragon Ball GT, "Until We Meet Again". Film appearances ''Mystical Adventure'' When Goku lands in Korin Tower after being defeated by General Tao, Korin picks up the Dragon Ball that falls out of his Gi asking why everyone is so desperate to obtain them. After Goku explains himself, Korin throws him a Senzu Bean to heal up on before tossing the Dragon Ball into a barrel of water. Korin asks Goku if he can see the Dragon Ball and initially says no until the water stills and the Dragon Ball becomes clear. Korin explains that Goku lost his fight against Tao for the same reason, that he was angry whilst fighting and was unable to see clearly. After telling Goku that Tao was approaching, he sees him off, saying that Goku was a good kid. ''Cooler's Revenge'' When Goku ends up being severely wounded by taking the brunt force of an attack by Cooler, Gohan, in order to help Goku recover while in hiding from Cooler and his Armored Squadron, travels to Korin Tower to obtain some Senzu Beans. Although Korin declines Gohan's request because he did not try to give him a gift (in the original version, it was because Gohan only climbed halfway up the tower). Despite this however, he ended up having to let Gohan get the bean satchel as well as a spare bean anyways, primarily due to Yajirobe's interference, causing them to get into a severe argument. ''Battle of Gods'' Korin appears in the prologue when the narrator recaps the adventures and rigorous battles fought by Goku and his friends along with their journey to collect the 7 Dragon Balls to make a wish to Shenron whenever they needed them. Other Dragon Ball Stories ''Yo! Son Goku and His Friends Return!! Two years after Kid Buu's defeat, Korin, along with Yajirobe, attends Mr. Satan's banquet at his newly made hotel in celebration of defeating Buu.Dragon Ball: Yo! Son Goku and His Friends Return!!, 2008 The celebration is then crashed by a brother duo, Avo and Cado, whom are after Vegeta's brother, Tarble. The brothers are challenged by Goten and Trunks but they fail in defeating them. The brothers, merged as Aka, unleash a technique that destroyed the hotel. Aka is then defeated by Goku with a Kamehameha. After this encounter, they continue their feast. Power ;Manga and anime Korin is a powerful being to the extent that initially it took Master Roshi three years to catch him and Goku three days. However, by the time of the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament, Korin said that Goku already possessed more power than him. ;Statements according to authors and guidebooks Korin's power level is 190 according to an issue of the ''Weekly Shonen Jump.Weekly Jump, issue 31st, 1989 His power level is 1,700 in Dragon Ball Z: The Anime Adventure Game. Techniques and Special Abilities *'Flight' – The ability to fly with the use of ki. *'Afterimage Technique' – An ability to move so swiftly that an image of the user is left behind. Korin claims to be the inventor of this technique. *'Lightning Bolts' – Korin can call down thunder from the sky to stun those who attempt to climb the Korin Tower without following the rules. Korin uses this technique in Dragon Ball: Origins 2, at the end of the bonus level 5-7, when Goku tries to take Krillin and Yamcha with him at the top of the Korin Tower. This technique is similar to Rage Shenron's Dragon Thunder. *'Telepathy' – It is a way to communicate with others using one's mind. Users can also read the minds of the ones they communicate with, similar to telepathic eavesdropping. *'Far-Seeing ArtsDaizenshuu 7'', 1996 – A form of Telepathy used by a few people in the higher realms to observe the situation in the lower realm. Equipment *Korin's staff' – Korin can shoot a Kiai out of his staff. *'Senzu Bean' - Korin is the only one who grows the Senzu Beans which heal wounds and are equivalent to eating ten days worth of food. Korin Tower is the only place in the world they are grown, and so these magic beans are quite valuable. The Senzu Beans are used frequently in ''Dragon Ball Z to restore energy in battle, and they save the lives of the Z Fighters many times. The beans are limited in number and are difficult to grow, and so Korin only gives them to the Z Fighters in time of need or before a battle. Usually no more than five are carried at a time. In Dragon Ball Online, it is revealed he eventually taught Yajirobe how to cultivate Senzu Beans, who later descended Korin Tower to become a Senzu Bean farmer. Video Game Appearances Korin appears in during the story of Dragon Ball: Daimaō Fukkatsu, Dragon Ball 3: Gokuden, Dragon Ball Z: Super Gokuden: Totsugeki-Hen, Dragon Ball Z: Idainaru Son Goku Densetsu, Dragon Ball: Advanced Adventure, and Dragon Ball RPG: Shōnen-hen. In Dragon Ball: Revenge of King Piccolo, he has to be caught to complete a mission. He also in the Story Mode of Dragon Ball: Origins 2, and is the final secret boss encountered after completing the ultimate challenge in the bonus level 8-8. In Dragon Ball Z: Kyōshū! Saiyan, Dragon Ball Z III: Ressen Jinzōningen, and Dragon Ball Z Gaiden: Saiyajin Zetsumetsu Keikaku, Korin restores the heroes' health every time they visit him. He also appears in Dragon Ball Z Gaiden: Shin Saiyajin Zetsumetsu Keikaku - Chikyū-Hen, and with Yajirobe at the beginning of Dragon Ball Z Gaiden: Shin Saiyajin Zetsumetsu Keikaku - Uchū-Hen during the heroes' departure for the Dark Planet. Korin is also in the crossover games Famicom Jump: Hero Retsuden and Famicom Jump II: Saikyō no Shichinin. Korin appears in the ''Legacy of Goku'' series, Dragon Ball Z: Budokai, Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3, Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2, and Dragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans. In The Legacy of Goku II, if the heroes give Korin fish, he will trade Senzu Beans in a 1:1 ratio up to a limit of three Senzu Beans in the inventory while in Buu's Fury he will give money or Holy Water. He appears in a mini-game in Dragon Ball Z: Battle Taikan Kamehameha - Omee to Fusion where he launches Senzu Beans and bombs at the player. In Dragon Ball Z: Harukanaru Densetsu, he is a support character who gives Senzu Beans when encountered. Korin is also an Assist Character in Dragon Ball Z: Bakuretsu Impact. Korin appears in Dragon Ball Online, and is notably seen in the second cinematic opening trailer for the game, now wearing glasses and his blue manga coloration. It is revealed that Korin apparently passes on his knowledge of how to grow Senzu Beans to Yajirobe, as Yajirobe descends Korin's Tower in Age 826 and begins cultivating Senzu Beans. He also has an evil counterpart named Chocolay who specializes in the cultivation of evil lifeforms and grows Dark Senzu Beans for the Time Breakers in exchange for them building an evil counterpart to Korin's Tower called Chocolay Tower. In Dragon Ball Xenoverse, Korin's staff appears as an wearable accessory item for the Future Warrior. Korin's staff also returns as a wearable accessory in Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2. As part of the 1.07.00 Update, the description of Yajirobe's Clothes states that Yajirobe is Korin's messenger. In Dragon Ball Fusions, Korin Tower appears in the Timespace Rift and is connected to various areas within the rift. Korin himself appears at the top of the tower. Interestingly, at one point Kid Goku calls Korin Whiskers, possibly as a reference to his name in the Harmony Gold dub of Dragon Ball. He also appears in Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot as a non-playable character. Voice Actors *Japanese: Ichirō Nagai † (most media), Naoki Tatsuta (DBZ episodes 217-241, Shin Saiyajin Zetsumetsu Keikaku, Budokai), Ken Uo (DBS) *English: **Harmony Gold dub: Ted Lehmann (DB movie 3) **Ocean Group dubs: Paul Dobson (DBZ episodes 27-35 edited), Ted Cole (DBZ episodes 124-285 edited) **Funimation dub: Mark Britten (DBZ episodes 111-193, DB movie 3, DBZ movie 5, Budokai), Christopher R. Sabat **Blue Water dub: Roger Rhodes **AB Groupe dub: Paul Bandey (DBZ movie 5) **Creative Products dub: Ray Buyco *German dub: Karlheinz Tafel (DB), Regine Albrecht (DBZ episodes 26, 34-38), Karl Sturm (DBZ episodes 110-112, 115, 154, 169, 241 and DB movie 3), Kaspar Eichel (DBZ episodes 217, 218 and DBZ movie 5), Mathias Kunze (DBZ Kai) *Hebrew dub: Efron Etkin *Latin American Spanish dub: Arturo Mercado *Portuguese: **Brazilian Portuguese dub: Fabio Moura (DB, DBZ Kai, DBS), Marcelo Pissardini (DBZ), Alexandre Soares (DBZ Kai TFC), Faduli Costa (Cooler's Revenge) **Portuguese dub (Portugal): Antonio Semedo, Rui de Sá (DBS) *Polish dub: Piotr Makarski (DBS) Trivia *His name is derived from K'arin, the Japanese name for the . His tower, the "Korin Tower" (カリン塔 Karin-tō), is a play on a type of fried dough cake called "karinto" (花林糖, karintō), which fits the common theme of the characters being named after foods. He is widely known to western audiences as Korin, a pun on corn, as opposed to his Japanese name, Karin. *In the Hungarian dub of the series and the AB Groupe English dub of the movie Mystical Adventure, Korin's gender is changed to female. *In the Red Ribbon Army Saga, Goku's Flying Nimbus was destroyed, but when he climbed Korin Tower, Korin told him they can never be destroyed (this is later contradicted in the King Piccolo Saga when Tambourine destroys the cloud though Goku gets a replacement from Korin). However, for some reason, in the 3rd Dragon Ball movie, Mystical Adventure, Korin is surprised to see a cloud like Flying Nimbus. *In Dragon Ball episode 68, "The Last Dragon Ball", Puar tells Oolong a joke about Korin. He says "If Korin were in the Red Ribbon Army, what would he be??", to which Oolong replies "Probably a general." Puar then says "No!! Everyone knows he would be a colonel!!". Referring to Korin's name being a pun of the word "corn". *Korin is briefly seen in Dr. Slump and Arale-chan: N-cha! Love Comes From Penguin Village where he runs past the screen before Yajirobe does in the opposite direction. *In the video game by Capcom, the cat brush god Kabegami can be reached by climbing a tower that reaches to the skies, similar to the Korin Tower. Gallery See also *Korin (Collectibles) References Site Navigation es:Karin de:Karin pt-br:Mestre Karin Category:Animals Category:Characters Category:DB Characters Category:DBZ Characters Category:DBGT Characters Category:DBS Characters Category:Film characters Category:Characters who can fly Category:Characters who cannot die of natural causes Category:Deities Category:Local Deities Category:Males Category:Martial Artists Category:Z Fighters Support